


Taking the Plunge Into Darkness

by japanfan101



Series: Learning to Love the Void [1]
Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Frisk makes an appearance, a bit of angst, but neither stays more than a paragraph, so does Alphys
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-02-21
Updated: 2016-02-21
Packaged: 2018-05-22 10:41:00
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,507
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6076218
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/japanfan101/pseuds/japanfan101
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A drabble about how Gaster may have reacted after first falling into the void, and how things might work there.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Taking the Plunge Into Darkness

All he could remember was falling, falling for what seemed to be forever. There was no end, around him was overwhelming darkness that threatened to take him over.

There was no time here… had he been falling for seconds or decades? The darkness seeped into his brain and muddled his thoughts, making it nearly impossible to think. He could only experience the here, the now, wherever and whenever that was… Silence echoed through the entire space.

Eventually he stopped falling. There was no floor beneath him, he had just stopped. It was like he had fallen into an infinite vacuum. He couldn’t see anything, no matter which direction he looked. If there was anything other than emptiness here, it had been swallowed up in darkness.

When Gaster finally collected himself, he found that no matter how much he willed it he couldn’t move. Looking down, instead of seeing his own body, there was nothing but dark, empty space. With his mind reeling, he tried to calm himself. _Do I even exist right now? How am I alive?_ He felt completely numb, all of his senses had been overtaken. The only thing that came to mind is that it must just be too dark to see, and maybe the fall injured him. However when he tried to move, nothing happened.

_This place... obviously it’s real, since I’m here. But how? It was always a possibility, but no one should be able to exist here. Did I somehow survive, against all odds? This is… interesting. I want to learn more about what’s going on._

There was no up or down, left or right. No solid walls or floors, just the illusion of a floor that his mind created to make the void easier to fathom and exist in. Wherever this was, it seemed to be… nonexistent. Somehow. Occasionally he saw bits of light from what looked like cracks piercing through the darkness. It intrigued him greatly, and he tried everything he could think of to will himself over to the lights.

He learned through experience that somehow, he had become part of this place. It was strange, to say the least. Thinking about it, he guessed that there’s nothing in this place that exists on its own. Anything that winds up here becomes a part of the shadows eventually. The thought unnerved him. _How long until I’m fully… absorbed? Will that happen? Have there been other living creatures here before me or am I the first?_

After some time, he was able to create a body for himself, a mere shadow of his former self, as he became more and more attuned to the void. It wasn’t perfect, but it allowed him to move which was really the main goal. He couldn’t sense time, but assumed that outside of here time still continued on. This body was more of a goopy mess than anything, but it was better than nothing and he was excited to finally be able to move around and examine the lights that periodically appeared.

Pulling himself along the floor, he eventually found a crack in the darkness. It seemed to open up somewhere else, but where? And how? He slowly approached the light, fearing that getting too close would cause it to disappear. Reaching a hand out, he hesitantly tried to touch the light. This could be his ticket out of here. _But can I leave at all…?_

Bringing his face closer to the gap, he saw the lab where he had worked. Gaster recognized his best assistant, Dr. Alphys, taking notes on the core. She was checking it and ensuring that everything was running correctly. With a small nod, she mumbled to herself, taking down some notes on the clipboard in her hand.

Gaster was so excited to see a familiar place, and a familiar person. He had a vague idea of where he was but no clue how it truly worked. He tried pushing himself through the crack, but there was something blocking him. Frustrated and desperate, he tried to slam against whatever was blocking him, but that practically tore his body apart so he gave up after only a few attempts.

Wistfully, he put his hand flat against whatever was blocking him and watched the lab until Alphys left, and there was nothing more to see. A deep sadness welled up inside him, he wanted to be home and to get back to work in the lab, spending his days studying and unraveling the secrets of the world. Most importantly, he wanted to continue searching for a way to allow his fellow monsters to escape without the need for any more sacrifices. There was surely a way around using human souls to open the barrier, and he was determined to figure it out.

He shook his head and pulled his hand away, watching the light slowly fade. At least that solves the mystery of what the light he’s been seeing actually is. This place was somewhere between worlds, and there was at least one window that led to his own universe. He couldn’t get through that one and doubted that he could get through any others, but wanted to try anyways. Perhaps there were some that led to other places and hopefully at least one he could get through.

Being here felt as though all his senses had been stolen, the only sign that they still worked was the lights. As far as he could see, there was nothing but the dark, bleak, emptiness. With a shudder, his thoughts wandered to his friends and family. He set off, delving deeper into the darkness. There was no way he’d stay stuck here forever.

His eyes swept over another blinding light somewhere off in the distance. _At least it’s easy to see them._ He hurried over as best as he could, wondering why and how these cracks appeared. If he could figure it out, he could potentially create his own windows into any universe or time he wanted.

The other side of the portal showed a square, light grey room. It was completely empty, and he couldn’t see a door to get in or out of the room. Curious, he moved his face closer to the opening to get a better look. Sure enough, there was nothing. The walls and floor looked smooth, there were no dents or cracks or any sign of that room ever being used for something.

As he leaned in forward he realized too late that there wasn’t a barrier blocking the room; with a loud smack he found himself flat on the floor. After letting what just happened sink in, he slowly raised himself up and reformed a body out of the goopy mess he’d become.

Since this was the first time Gaster had been able to see himself as separate from the world around him, he looked down. He was basically made out of goop, the same shade of black from the void that seemed to suck in all the light around it. It was thick, like molasses, but somehow it was fairly easy to glide over surfaces. He noted that it wasn’t all that sticky, despite how it looked. He grimaced at the sight of his new body, _well at least I still have a body, I guess. Wonder what it’s actually made of, though…_

He raised his hands in front of his face and saw holes in his palms. With furrowed brows, he turned his hand over. _When did this happen? Strange… I don’t recall anything that would have caused this._

While he was lost in thought, a grey door appeared and slowly opened without a sound. Gaster was too focused to notice when a small human child in a striped shirt walk in and shut the door behind him. _If this is what my body and hands look like, I’m almost glad there’s no mirror in here._

Snapping out of his thoughts, quiet footsteps could be heard behind him. With a start he turned around and saw a human looking up at him. His eyes widened and he jumped slightly, shocked. He paused and watched them, and for a few moments they just… stared at one another. Gaster eventually opened his mouth to say something, but there was a tugging sensation, he felt his soul being pulled back into the void. He tried his hardest to stay in that room, but despite his best efforts, he was plunged into darkness once again, in the blink of an eye.

A sense of dread began to overtake him, as he realized he would probably be stuck here for a while… Even if there was a way out, he could be pulled back apparently. Every direction he looked was just darkness threatening to suffocate him. _I have to get out of here, clearly it’s possible. I have to figure out how._

After a few moments spent calming himself, he stood back onto his feet and began to move forward, hoping against all odds that he could get home.

**Author's Note:**

> Soooo yeah. I wrote this a while ago but was nervous to post it, so I decided to fix it and post it now instead. :p Still isn't perfect but I'm happy with it overall


End file.
